After capturing two majors in quick succession Padraig Harrington has the golfing world at his feet, and suddenly the question being asked is - can he go on to make it four in a row? His victory in the US PGA Championship underlined that fact that Harrington is a fearless competitor who has worked tirelessly over the years to build a game good enough to put him in the record books.
When Tiger Woods won four consecutive majors spread across two calendar years, the golfing press didn't know what to call it. But after Harrington's triumph at Oakland Hills they're already talking up his chances of completing the "Paddy Slam". Without question, the majors suit Harrington's game more than regular tournaments because of the way the courses are set up. They challenge you from the tee; they challenge you with the iron shots you have to make; and they challenge you on and around the greens.
That suits Harrington to perfection because he has a great short game, he's generally accurate off the tee, he's a very good iron player, and has tremendous determination. You can see it in his eyes. There are a lot of other players with far more natural ability, but they don't have his determination and dedication. And you can see from the way they play that instead of going for the win, they're trying not to make mistakes.
Harrington isn't afraid to go for it when he senses a chance to win, while a lot of other guys are. He's able to commit to his shots at key times, as he showed by overcoming Sergio Garcia to take the US PGA title. His tee shot on the par three 15th in the final round was a great example of this. The hole location was back right, over the bunker, and normally he would have to go with a four iron. But the four iron trajectory would not have allowed him to stop the ball near the pin, so he hit a shot he wouldn't normally play because he needed something special.
He took a five iron and hit it as hard and high as he could because that's what he needed to do to set up a good birdie chance, and he pulled it off. Being the genius he is, Garcia got inside him. But Harrington holed his putt to put the heat on Garcia who then pulled his putt left, what he often does under pressure. One of Harrington's greatest strengths is the family and friends who are always there when he needs them. His brother-in-law is his caddie, and his wife and children are never far away. The support he gets from them is probably as good as the support any player gets. That's typical of the Irish. They're very family oriented, and if you have friends in Ireland they tend to be very good friends, and friends for life. He's very fortunate in that. Team Harrington is one of the strongest teams around.
It's quite a contrast to the team that surrounds Phil Mickelson, for example. During a practice round for the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale he had six people walking the course with him - his physio, his short game guru, etc etc - and I'm not alone in wondering how much he benefits from having an entourage like that. As far as the Paddy Slam is concerned, the Masters next April will be Harrington's toughest test. Tiger should be back by then, and Augusta National definitely favours the longest hitters, who have an advantage on the par fives.
But on the tighter courses, Harrington comes into his own. That's why he has more chance of winning a major than a normal PGA Tour event. If he can overcome Augusta National next April, he'll take a huge amount of confidence into the US Open which sets the tightest courses of all the majors, and the Paddy Slam will be a genuine possibility. @Email:sports@thenational.ae